scam

SlowMist announced that a new recruitment scam targeting Web3 practitioners has recently been discovered. Attackers impersonate recruiters, luring victims to install an AI meeting software called "Relay," which is actually an information-stealing malware.This malware targets both macOS and Windows users and can steal sensitive information such as browser credentials, cryptocurrency wallet-related data, Keychain data, Telegram sessions, and more. SlowMist has completed sample analysis and disclosed how this attack chain operates. SlowMist reminds that when participating in online interviews or recruitment processes, one should be cautious about installing unfamiliar software, avoid running unverified applications, and pay attention to unusual installation requests or system password prompts.

According to TechCrunch, Apple has been sued over App Store security issues. Three plaintiffs claim they were induced to download a fraudulent cryptocurrency wallet app, Sparrow Wallet, which is not officially available for iOS. The plaintiffs have incurred losses totaling over $1.8 million—James Ramirez lost approximately $875,000, Christopher Ellis lost about $840,000, and Jalen Delgado lost around $120,000.The lawsuit accuses Apple of knowingly allowing fraudulent apps to remain in the App Store while using its security promises as a marketing tool to resist third-party app stores and sideloading. The plaintiffs are seeking a jury trial, damages, and public disclosure of App Store risks. Apple has not commented on the lawsuit but stated that counterfeit apps violate its guidelines and will be swiftly removed. Currently, there are no counterfeit versions of Sparrow Wallet in the App Store, and over 371,000 submissions of plagiarized or misleading apps have been rejected in 2025.

According to Decrypt, the U.S. Department of Justice's District of Columbia Attorney's Office, in conjunction with the Secret Service, has filed five civil forfeiture lawsuits in court regarding investment fraud and "pig butchering" scams, seizing over $25 million in cryptocurrency assets, with victims spread across the U.S. and Canada.The largest case involves approximately $12.1 million, with over 200 victims; the amount marked by Canada is about $10.4 million, involving over 270 suspicious transactions; the remaining three cases range from $285,000 to $2.4 million, one of which involves scammers posing as "fund recovery intermediaries" to carry out secondary fraud. Investigations show that money launderers are primarily located in Southeast Asia, with involved IP addresses coming from China, Malaysia, and Cambodia. This operation is part of the "Fraud Center Task Force" established in November 2025, which has cumulatively recovered over $800 million, and the five cases are still under ongoing investigation.

On July 18 to 19, the Bangalore branch of the Indian Enforcement Directorate conducted raids at multiple locations involved in a virtual asset over-the-counter trading scam targeting overseas investors, based on the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).The criminal gang claimed to supply tokens such as MultiversX, Kava, BEAM, GRASS, SUI, VANA, and AGLD at discounted prices through private social channels, thereby enticing foreign investors to invest funds. The total amount involved in the case is approximately $35 million, initially reported by a Dutch entity.This operation has seized electronic devices, wallet credentials, and cryptocurrency assets worth 8,700 USDT. Law enforcement agencies are continuing to expand leads and dig deeper into the complete criminal chain.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced that it has filed a lawsuit against Florida resident Zan Shaikh and his company Bright Vision Distribution LLC (operating under the name Mining Automatic), accusing them of defrauding investors through a fraudulent cryptocurrency mining investment scheme, with approximately $22 million raised.The SEC stated that from June 2023 to May 2025, Shaikh and Mining Automatic promised investors fixed monthly returns by participating in cryptocurrency mining operations, but the related mining operations were actually unable to generate the promised returns. According to the SEC's complaint, Shaikh and Mining Automatic are accused of making false statements regarding their cryptocurrency mining experience, operational capabilities, the use of investment funds, and the status of the mining business, and explained payment delays by claiming they were unable to pay investor returns.

According to a statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of New York, two Chinese citizens, Chen Zhuoying (also known as "Jolene," 27 years old, Brooklyn) and Zhang Haojie (also known as "Kevin," 38 years old, Queens), were formally charged on July 16 in federal court in Brooklyn with conspiracy to commit money laundering.According to the allegations, the two managed a money laundering network of over ten people in Queens and Brooklyn from 2020 to 2022, using approximately 45 shell companies and 140 business bank accounts to transfer at least $43 million in proceeds from "pig butchering" investment scams to accounts in China. The "pig butchering" scam contacts victims through social media or instant messaging software, gaining their trust with false high-return investment opportunities before absconding with their money. This case is being jointly investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the FBI, IRS-CI, and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. If convicted, both defendants face a maximum of 20 years in prison.

According to Bitcoin.com, the Singapore Police Force's Anti-Fraud Centre and Cybercrime Investigation Department, in a six-week joint anti-fraud operation from April 16 to May 31, 2026, collaborated with Coinbase, Coinhako, Gemini, Independent Reserve, OKX, StraitsX, and Upbit to identify potential fraud victims using blockchain analysis tools from Chainalysis and TRM Labs. They conducted over 145 targeted interventions through phone calls and on-site visits, preventing potential losses exceeding $4.2 million.Coinbase Singapore posted on X on July 10, stating that it collaborated with the Singapore Police to prevent over 145 individuals from losing a total of more than $4.2 million due to fraud. The Singapore Police stated that they will continue to work with cryptocurrency exchanges and other private sectors to combat cybercrime.

The cross-chain interoperability platform Relay Protocol has issued a warning, stating that since the launch of the Ethereum Layer 2 network Robinhood Chain based on Arbitrum on July 1, a large number of honeypot scam tokens have emerged. After users purchase these tokens, they automatically disappear from their wallets, and the funds cannot be recovered. Relay Protocol clarified that this is not due to a breach of wallet infrastructure; users' private keys and other assets remain secure, and the malicious logic exists only within the scam token contracts themselves.The typical operation of honeypot tokens allows users to buy in but prevents selling through hard-coded rules, or automatically transfers funds to the attacker's wallet. Some users have reported that a certain token contract uses hidden storage mappings to bypass standard ERC-20 security checks to steal assets.Relay Protocol stated that it is blocking discovered scam tokens and verifying safe tokens, advising users to only trade tokens verified by trusted sources, to verify contract addresses before trading, and to test with small amounts of funds first. The platform pointed out that attracting scammers in the early stages of a new chain launch is not an issue unique to Robinhood Chain; similar situations have occurred with other L1 and L2 chains upon their launch.

According to Cryptopolitan, data released by law enforcement in Texas shows that residents of the state suffered financial losses totaling up to $56.8 million from cryptocurrency ATM scams in the past year. An estimated 1,200 Texas residents have fallen victim to such scams.The typical method of operation for cryptocurrency ATM scams involves scammers impersonating government agencies or company staff over the phone, falsely claiming that the victims are involved in legal issues or owe money, and demanding that victims go to a cryptocurrency ATM to convert cash into cryptocurrency and transfer it to a designated address. Due to the irreversibility of cryptocurrency transactions and a certain degree of anonymity, once the funds are transferred, it is extremely difficult to recover them. Texas has become one of the hardest-hit areas for cryptocurrency ATM scams in the United States, and state regulators are strengthening public education and prevention measures to remind residents to be vigilant against such new types of scams.

The China Payment and Clearing Association has issued a warning to prevent cross-border gambling scams involving virtual currency, aimed at helping the general public enhance their awareness of fraud prevention and their ability to recognize scams.The China Payment and Clearing Association reminds that cross-border gambling results in "ten bets, ten losses." Participating in gambling through virtual currency is more concealed and risky. Engaging in gambling and providing funding for gambling activities is illegal and against regulations. Do not participate in virtual currency gambling transactions, and maintain the bottom line of financial security.

According to The Block, Florida man Christopher Alexander Delgado (34 years old) pleaded guilty to charges of telecommunications fraud, conspiracy to commit fraud, and money laundering. His company Goliath Ventures carried out a Ponzi scheme under the guise of investing in cryptocurrency liquidity pools, raising over $400 million from investors and causing actual losses of at least $250 million.The funds were used to purchase six luxury homes valued between $1.15 million and $8.5 million, multiple Lamborghinis and Rolls-Royces, as well as a large number of Rolex watches, Louis Vuitton bags, and Tiffany custom jewelry. Delgado has agreed to forfeit eight properties, 11 vehicles, 30 watches, over 50 luxury bags, and 29 pieces of jewelry. Each fraud charge carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, while the money laundering charge carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) reminds victims of the OneCoin international cryptocurrency investment scam that they can apply for compensation through a special program by the Department of Justice (DOJ) before the deadline.This process allows individuals who purchased OneCoin and suffered direct financial losses due to the OneCoin scheme between 2014 and 2019 to submit applications. Victims can submit applications via mail, email, or an online form. However, submitting an application does not guarantee financial compensation.The DOJ stated that global investors in OneCoin have collectively lost over $4 billion.

A New York man was sentenced to 15 months in prison and 3 years of supervised release by a U.S. court for impersonating a cryptocurrency influencer on Telegram and using false staking returns as bait to defraud investors. 39-year-old Noman Saleem pleaded guilty to wire fraud in September 2025.Prosecutors stated that he created multiple fake Telegram accounts impersonating well-known crypto KOLs and attracted thousands of people to join his channels, even setting up paid "VIP sub-channels." Saleem claimed to victims that he could provide "guaranteed returns" through crypto staking or investment opportunities, inducing many to transfer their crypto assets into wallets under his control. However, prosecutors indicated that he did not actually engage in any staking operations and ceased communication after obtaining the funds, taking the victims' assets with him.The case resulted in losses exceeding $1.4 million, and the U.S. government has recovered and seized most of the funds.

According to on-chain analyst ZachXBT, an address related to the $575 million Hashflare investment scam (0xff57...5d22) has transferred 10,600 ETH (approximately $18.5 million) about 3 hours ago after being dormant for 3.5 years.The two Estonian founders of the case, Sergei Potapenko and Ivan Turogin, pleaded guilty in 2025 and forfeited approximately $450 million in assets to the U.S. government. The transferred funds were then laundered through HiFiSwap and Near Intents, crossing from Ethereum to Bitcoin, using two instant exchange platforms. The fund flow addresses include 0xc82f...9d04 and 0x3297...2527.

According to the "Мошеловка" platform, scammers impersonate authorized brokers of the Moscow Exchange through social media, luring users to click phishing links under the pretext of "testing cryptocurrency trading channels," resulting in theft of funds and information. The Moscow Exchange emphasizes that all official trading must be conducted through licensed brokers, and there are no exclusive cryptocurrency purchasing channels for ordinary users.According to data from the Russian IT company "Shard," in 2025, Russian users are expected to lose approximately 234 million rubles due to cryptocurrency phishing, accounting for 62% of the total losses in cryptocurrency assets that year.

"On-chain detective" ZachXBT published a case analysis stating that in a cryptocurrency asset case involving an Indian scam gang, the relevant individuals reported the case to law enforcement after their assets were frozen, drawing attention. The incident began when a user sought help, claiming that approximately 5.73 BTC (about $475,000) was frozen on Changelly in March 2025.Subsequent on-chain analysis revealed that these funds could be traced back to multiple social engineering attacks and theft cases related to Bitcoin ATMs targeting U.S. users, with a total amount involved exceeding $1 million and several elderly victims. The investigation showed that the individual provided multiple changing explanations for the source of the funds, including "loan," "boss transfer," and "investment from 2014-2015," and there were significant contradictions in the evidence chain.More concerning is that this user had previously filed a police report in India in December 2025, attempting to recover the frozen funds (case number 3207-P/2025). Subsequent on-chain evidence collection and email data analysis indicated that they might be a "mule" for transferring funds, with some bank documents inconsistent with their identity information. ZachXBT noted that such cases demonstrate that social engineering attacks and cross-border fund transfers continue to occur and remind users to avoid interacting with funds from suspicious sources to prevent triggering compliance freezes or legal risks.

According to the U.S. Department of Justice, Rodney "Bitcoin Rodney" Burton, a resident of Miami, Florida, has pleaded guilty in federal court, admitting to participating in a cryptocurrency fraud scheme related to HyperFund, with an amount involved of approximately $1.8 billion.The U.S. Department of Justice stated that the project raised funds from investors through global financing and was used during its operation to promote fund transfers, constituting a large-scale cross-border telecommunications fraud network. Burton faces a maximum of 5 years in federal prison, with sentencing hearings scheduled for July 23. Law enforcement agencies indicated that the case is being jointly investigated by the IRS Criminal Investigation Division and the Department of Homeland Security Investigations.

According to Bloomberg, the U.S. government has seized nearly $9 million in USDT, stating that the related funds can be traced back to an organized fraud network.The U.S. Department of Justice stated that this operation targeted a scam model commonly known as "pig butchering," where the involved gang gained the victims' trust by establishing fake romantic or personal relationships and induced victims to transfer money with fabricated cryptocurrency investment returns.

According to local media in Hong Kong, on June 5, the Hong Kong police received a report from a man who claimed that he was scammed out of 1.6 million USDT by a counterfeit exchange while exchanging virtual currency, which is worth approximately 14 million Hong Kong dollars. After preliminary investigation, the police classified the case as "obtaining property by deception" and handed it over to the 10th team of the Mong Kok District Criminal Investigation Unit for follow-up, with no arrests made yet. The police remind citizens that obtaining property by deception is a serious crime, and upon conviction, the maximum penalty can be imprisonment for fourteen years.

A female tycoon in the domestic cryptocurrency circle encountered an investment scam in the United States, resulting in a loss of over $9.4 million (approximately 60 million yuan). Reports indicate that this individual is a certain Lv, the CEO of a computing power technology company in Southwest China, whose mining pool reportedly accounted for about 9% of the global Bitcoin total computing power at its peak.The report pointed out that two brothers, claiming to have a "Middle Eastern royal family" background, carried out the scam by forging identities. One of them claimed to be a "Middle Eastern royal family son-in-law" and asserted that he controlled funds from Middle Eastern families, international business relations, and resources from local governments in the United States; the other mimicked a character from the American drama "Billions," presenting himself as a hedge fund manager. The two also successfully contacted and influenced Michael Smedley, the chief of staff to the mayor of East Cleveland, Ohio, ultimately inducing Lv to sign a cryptocurrency mining field development contract.